Valiente lifts USPA Gold Cup

VALIENTE GOT THE better of Zacara to lift the USPA Piaget Gold Cup yesterday at International Polo Club Palm Beach.

The team of patron Bob Jornayvaz, Pelon Stirling, Adolfo Cambiaso and Santi Torres defeated Lyndon's Lea's Zacara team 13-9 in the final of the 26-goal tournament.

Zacara, which also featured Facundo Pieres, Mike Azzaro and Magoo Laprida, established a narrow 5-4 lead by half-time, but this was quashed by Valiente early in the second half, with Cambiaso and Torres putting their team 9-5 ahead by the end of the fourth chukka.

Valiente maintained their lead to secure the win, giving Cambiaso and Stirling a second consecutive USPA Gold Cup title. The ten-goalers won the tournament in 2012, playing for Robert Jornayvaz's Valiente II. Both Valiente and Zacara will go on to contest the Maserati US Open, which gets underway on Wednesday.

Piaget was the winner of the subsidiary final, defeating ERG 9-8 to win the Butler Handicap.